Thursday, November 27, 2008

Life Underneath the Concrete

I just finished watching a round-table discussion centering around the book, "Disrobing the Aboriginal Industry: The Deception Behind Indigenous Cultural Preservation," co-authored by Frances Widdowson and Albert Howard.

Let me applaud the wonderful job the panel of aboriginal academics did of shooting this work to pieces. Next to David Newhouse, Cynthia Wesley-Esquimaux and Patrick Brazeau, this pair of authors looked like a couple of stunned turkeys. Said Professor Wesley-Esquimaux, "Nobody should read this book," and it's safe to say I won't be wasting my money on it.

I am all for promoting discussion of aboriginal issues in this country, but not when material is being put forward by ignorant non-aboriginals (which, strangely enough, sounds a lot like their thesis statement) who believe, as they write in the book, that indigenous people are incapable of abstract thought or governance. It's almost like the co-authors looked at each other, asked "What's the one topic in the world we're most misinformed about?" and decided to write a book about it.

Further to this, Frances Widdowson states that these claims are not racist. Excuse me? How the hell can you make a derogatory remark about an entire race and them say your allegation is not racist? Perhaps she does not know the meaning of the term.


rac·ism
(rā'sĭz'əm) n.
  1. The belief that race accounts for differences in human character or ability and that a particular race is superior to others.
  2. Discrimination or prejudice based on race.

Exactly.

The discussion swayed, at one point, to the growing number of indigenous individuals living in urban centres. It was at this point that professor Newhouse produced the beautiful utterance that formed the title for today's entry. He spoke to the fact that aboriginal spirituality teaches a connection of the individual with the earth that is carried along even if we move from rural communities to cities. "There is life underneath the concrete."

The response from co-author Widdowson was, "Are we suggesting that the aboriginal people have a spiritual relationship to the land?" Umm...let's review...aboriginal spirituality teaches a connection of the individual with the earth. Yes, I do believe that's what we're suggesting. "How is this substantiated?" she asks, going on to tear apart the beliefs of Canada's indigenous people citing that she has no spiritual beliefs herself. Really, Ms Widdowson? It's not your believe and it is therefore false? Wow. I applaud your academic vigour.

It became very obvious very quickly that this work came from a place of fear. Fear of the other, like homophobia or transphobia, does not make for excellence in academics, and the co-authors of Disrobing the Aboriginal Industry have supplied us with a perfect example of this phenomenon.

Why is it that so many individuals cannot accept that others might hold a set of beliefs that are different from one's own? How does aboriginal spiritual belief and cultural diversity pose a threat to the authors of this book? Just because they do not understand the importance of living off the land or of feeling a connection--both spiritual and physical--to the land that is our mother doesn't make this outlook obsolete, as they claim.

I'll leave professor Wesley-Esquimaux with the last words:
"People should have the option to live the way they choose."


Monday, November 24, 2008

Quick Six Interview with Jane Toombs

Quick Six
Interview with Jane Toombs

1. Hi Jane! Would you be so kind as to tell us what type of stories you write?

My favorite type is paranormal romance, but I also write historical, contemporary, Regency and fantasy romance. Plus a bit of horror.

2. What are you reading right now?

Aliens and Alien Societies: A writer's guide to creating extraterrestrial life-forms by Stanley Schmidt.

3. I hear music in the background…what’s playing?

A CD of Big Band Themes. (I go waaay back.)

4. Do you have a favourite naughty word?

One I say out loud? Sh-t.

5. Is there a word or phrase that absolutely makes you cringe?

Yeah, I never got used to fu-k being used as casual slang. That's not to say if I'm writing about some character that would use it I don't write it. But I hate to hear it said aloud.

6. Be honest: What are you snacking on?

A cup of decaf tea. Honest.

Promo time! Flog your wares. Any exciting new releases? How can readers find out more about you and your work?

At my website: www.JaneToombs.com Or at: www.JewelsoftheQuill,com where I'm one of 12 authors who work together to promote one another and also write anthologies. My latest book is my North Of Nonesuch Series of paranormal romances published by: www.whiskeycreekpress.com (North Of Nonesuch being where weird might happen--and usually does.)

Oooh...I'll definitely look into your paranormal work. The paranormal is a twenty-year-old interest of mine that has just started to re-emerge. It's sneaking its way into my writing, and now into my choice of reading material too.
Thanks so much for the interview!
Giselle

Monday, November 17, 2008

Giselle's on her knees yet again!

This is becoming a very familiar position...

Today I'm on my knees to beg and plead for your vote in the Midnight Seductions Endless Romance Contest.

It's reader's choice! From now until December 8th 2008, you can vote on the hottest love scene. I would be delighted if you could vote for mine, but even if you don't it's certainly worth checking out all 42 contest entries. Can you imagine? 42 love scenes to melt the snow outside my window.

My entry is a scene from erotic romance TANGLED ROOTS, available from eXcessica. And don't forget, I'm dona
ting every last penny of profit from all my sales through the eXcessica website until December 15th 2008 to the LGBT YOUTHLINE, a valuable organization providing peer support to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, transgender, 2-spirited, queer and questioning youth.

Get on over to Midnight Seductions to vote for the love scene that melts your butter. I hope it's mine!


Bright Blessings,
Giselle Renarde
Canada just got hotter!

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Free as a Sparrow

Guess what? Another Giselle Renarde FREE READ is up and available for you to devour. Fly on over to Oysters & Chocolate to pour over my newest tale, SPARROW TAKES FLIGHT. In fewer than a thousand words, this baby will shower you with rain-soaked lesbian longing. Best of all, it's free!!!


Freedom has been on my mind this week. On Remembrance Day--this past Tuesday--I was sitting at my computer as 11am approached. Last Call played on the radio and I found myself standing, facing the window looking North across my country, and preparing for a moment of silence.

In silence, I honoured freedom. I honoured my country, Canada, which allows me the space, both physical and mental, to be who I am. I do not support war, generally, but when I consider the basic human rights my grandparents fought to preserve, I am awed. When I imagine the atrocities of the concentration camps my sexual identity would have landed me in, tears fill my eyes.


I am free. I am free to speak my mind, even when my opinions are unpopular, even when my radical feminism sparks controversy. I am free to walk my girlfriend to her car, to kiss her lips as I say goodbye, with little fear of prejudice and no fear of imprisonment. To me, this is the greatest freedom of all.

We Canadians don't say this as often as we should, but...I love my country. Consider this a love letter to Canada.


Bright Blessings,

Giselle Renarde

Monday, November 10, 2008

Quick Six Interview with Sci-fi/Romance author Nikki Sinclaire

Quick Six Interview
with Sci-fi/Romance author Nikki Sinclaire


1. Hi Nikki! Would you be so kind as to tell us what type of stories you write?

I'll be happy to! The short answer to your question is that I write Sci-Fi/Romance with a pinch of Erotica (did I say pinch?), but there's a lot more to it than that.

I’m very particular about the Sci-Fi/Romance sub-genre, as I believe that it encompasses everything that I consider fun and exciting in a book. A Nikki Sinclaire novel has to be a story about first and foremost, romance with a "happily ever after" ending. It is about the characters and their relationships to one another.

Growing up, I was an avid Star Trek (the original series) fan. The show's special effects were novel and extremely expensive for their time. They were sophisticated enough, in fact, that their cost eventually led to the show’s cancellation. The gadgets on the show were clearly ahead of their time, and I would argue, gave us a glimpse into the future we're living in right now. Do today’s tablet notebook computers remind you of Nurse Chapel’s electronic note pad? Was that a floppy disk, CD or DVD that Mr. Spock kept loading data into his science station from?

Star Trek's special effects, however, served as the backdrop for the real story, they weren't the main event. The story of the relationships between the characters was what the show was all about. Spock’s lack of emotion, versus McCoy’s criticisms, paired with Scotty’s love for the ship and all led by Captain Kirk’s Alpha Male, agressive leadership style.

My novels follow that same style. Reading The Virtual Man, the first book in my new Virtual Reality series, readers, will be exposed to luxury starships, futuristic weaponry, sophisticated gadgets, nano-technology and cybernetic implants. All these “gadgets”, however, are part of the setting for the story, not the main event. The book is really about the relationships, emotions, passions and struggles of the characters. If I were to change the setting and move the story to 21st century Earth, all the plots, sub-plots and characters would still work. Yes, the book is set 500 years in the future, but the beautiful thing about it is that we fragile, flawed and stubborn humans really haven’t changed much in all that time. Love is still able to move mountains while greed and jealousy are still motivations for betrayal. Our needs aren’t going to be any different in the 25th century than they are right now in the 21st century. We all want to find that special person with whom we can share our life and it is no different in my 25th century existence.

The last thing I want to add is that humor is interweaved throughout my stories. My characters can be grumpy, sarcastic, impish or outright ornery. I believe that when the going gets tough you can either cry about it or laugh about it. I find laughter, particularly at the most unlikely of times, much more pleasant.


2. What are you reading right now?

Okay, you got me! I am reading two books at the same time, depending on my mood. I am reading a regency by Liz Carlyle titled Never Romance a Rake and I am also reading Lara Santiago's Little Red Rides the Wolf. I am strictly a romance novel reader. I don't have a lot of time to read, so when I do, it better be fun, inspiring and entertaining.

3. I hear music in the background…what’s playing?

Well, being a 70's child you will usually find me listening to 70's music. I have a friend who claims that when the clock struck one minute after midnight on January 1, 1980 I turned my radio off permanently. In my own defense that's not true since I do listen to a great deal of 80's music, such as what is playing right now, which is Call Me by Blondie. You could have just as easily caught me listening to Donna Summer, Kiss, Tavares, and the list goes on and on. I enjoy all kinds of music to include country western, southern rock, heavy metal or disco. The only thing you will never catch me listening to is classical music.


4. Do you have a favourite naughty word?

Well, let's see, since my writing tends to lean towards the erotic, I keep lists of appropriately descriptive words for both the male and female "genitalia" that I refer to depending on the context. of what I am writing. I tend to prefer, however, the more traditional "pussy" and "cock", so I think I'll declare it a tie and call them both my favorite naughty words.


5. Is there a word or phrase that absolutely makes you cringe?

YES! The phrase "to be perfectly honest with you" drives me nuts. It is a waste of breath. If you're telling me you're going to be honest with me right now, just this once, does that mean that the rest of the time you're lying to me? Or perhaps it means you are about to lie to me, but you want me to believe you.


6. Be honest: What are you snacking on?

Well, "to be perfectly honest with you..." [insert innocent grin here] Nothing! You believe me don't you? I am on my 7th Diet Coke of the day, though. Does that count?


Promo time! Flog your wares. Any exciting new releases? How can readers find out more about you and your work?

Yes, I am incredibly excited about my new book, The Virtual Man, which was just released October 23rd. It is an extremely funny, yet emotional and passionate story about two people who are thrust together by a quirk of fate and the underlying currents that lead the hero, Derek Hart, to be convicted of a crime he did not commit, while at the same time someone is trying to murder Tiana Weiss, the heroine. The plot involves betrayal, revenge, and a quest for power that is motivating an alien race to exterminate the very race they descended from. Humanity. Once they both discover that they are pawns in the much larger picture that threatens Earth's very existence, they set out to survive, fall in love and save the galaxy, not necessarily in that order. LOL.

The Virtual Man, is the first of a series of five books that I am calling, as I mentioned earlier, the Virtual Reality series. The book is available from Bookstrand Publishing at http://www.bookstrand.com/product-thevirtualman-13920-192.html. If your readers would like to learn more about me, my contests or the philosophy behind my writing I would encourage them to go to my web site at www.nikkisinclaire.com. If they just want to chat with me, they can also reach me via e-mail at nikki@nikkisinclaire.com.

Thank you so much for chatting with me today.


I'm going to have to turn my girlfriend Sweet on to your work; she's a sci-fi fanatic. (I always say "trekkie" but she tells me the proper term is "trekker"...) She has a knack of incorporating Star Trek into just about every conversation we have, and any time she needs to illustrate a point using an example, it's bound to be drawn from Star Trek...or Deep Space Nine because apparently they're not the same thing. Don't ask me! All I ever watched was The Next Generation because I had a huge crush on Patrick Stewart. (Ok, I still kinda do...)

Thanks so much for the interview, Nikki!

gigi

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Open Ears, Open Minds


How can erotica support LGBT youth?

To celebrate the re-release of my debut e-book THE BIRTHDAY GIFT, I would like to offer up a gift we can all take part in giving.

From now until December 15th 2008, the proceeds of each and every purchase of GISELLE RENARDE EROTICA through the eXcessica website will be donated to the Lesbian Gay Bi Trans YOUTHLINE!

LGBT YOUTHLINE provides queer-positive, non-judgmental peer support to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, transgender, 2-spirited, queer and questioning youth. Based in my home city, LGBT YOUTHLINE offers free services through its toll-free phone number, by email and instant messenger. To find out more about this organization, visit their website.

Please join me in raising funds to help LGBT YOUTHLINE expand its services and continue providing an open ear and an open mind to queer youth.

All you have to do is visit eXcessica.com and purchase a copy of THE BIRTHDAY GIFT, TANGLED ROOTS, or CUNNING LITTLE VIXENS by Giselle Renarde before midnight on December 15th 2008. After Paypal takes its thirty-nine cents or so, every penny from the sale will go to support this righteous cause.

Together, we can ensure LGBT youth are supported through times of trial and triumph.


THE BIRTHDAY GIFT is back and better than ever!


This is a great story for anybody who's a little curious about alternative lifestyles, gay male erotica, voyeurism, group sex or lesbian erotica. That's right: THE BIRTHDAY GIFT has it all! It's a wonderful read for anyone looking for sizzling erotica with a lot of variety and a twist you'll never see coming.


~Blurb~
Meredith is a cake-baking, apron-wearing small-town Canadian mom. Her guiding principle in life is, “What would June Cleaver do?” That is, until a curious set of circumstances cause her to crash an outdoor gathering where she stumbles upon a pair of delicious hunks getting a little hands-on with each other. Surely June C
leaver would have headed for the hills at the sight! Not Meredith. This relaxed get-together really heats up when one man’s wife appears on the scene… and encourages Meredith to join in.

To read a spicy excerpt and purchase your copy toda
y, visit:
http://excessica.com/index.php/books/the-birthday-gift-by-giselle-renarde/

Buy your copy before December 15th and proceeds w
ill be donated to LGBT YOUTHLINE!

Monday, November 3, 2008

Quick Six Interview with Vernon Welles

Quick Six
Interview with Vernon Welles

1. Hi Vernon! Would you be so kind as to tell us what type of stories you write?

VW: 60% Erotica, 20% Science fiction/Fantasy,15% Romance, 5% Poetry

2. What are you reading right now?

VW: Uncle John's Fast-Acting Long-Lasting Bathroom Reader (I love trivia)

3. I hear music in the background…what’s playing?

Sarah Vaughn - Dinah Washington - Billie Holiday - Ella Fitzgerald - Etta James (On rotation)

4. Do you have a favourite naughty word?

Naughty, as beauty, is in the ear (or eye) of the listener (or beholder). I do say 'fuck' a lot.

5. Is there a word or phrase that absolutely makes you cringe?

1) May I see your licence, sir? 2) This is gonna cost more than we figured. 3) I don't like the look of that lump.

6. Be honest: What are you snacking on?

Quaker Quakes Rice Snacks :Caramel Corn Flavor (and Earl Grey tea).

Promo time! Flog your wares. Any exciting new releases? How can readers find
out more about you and your work?

I'm working on a new Romance story to be posted on eXcessia, this will be my first. I have several stories posted under another nom de plume on Literotica.com. E-mail me at wellesvernonATyahooDOTcom if you're interested.

Thanks for the opportunity to be interviewed, Giselle.

No problem! Thanks for stopping by. And snacking on rice cakes and tea, you're my healthiest interviewee yet!
Cheers,
gigi